As Temperatures Soar into the Low 100's, Texas Breaks Previous Record for Electricity Usage

Austin – The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the industry coalition that administers the state's power grid and serves approximately 85 percent of the state's electric load, announced that preliminary numbers indicate that on Wednesday, July 19, 2000 as temperatures once again soared into triple digits in most of Texas, electricity usage reached an all-time peak high of 55,796 megawatts (MW). This figure broke a new record that had been set on Friday, July 14, 2000 of 54,959 megawatts. Prior to 2000, the historic record for peak usage was set almost a year ago on August 26, 1999 when Texans used 54,849 megawatts.

Temperatures in Texas have hovered around the 100-plus degree mark for the past two weeks causing daily usage to near the previous 1999 record on several occasions before it was finally broken on July 14. With severe droughts being predicted for much of the southwest, average temperatures in Texas are expected to remain in the high 90- to low 100-degree range at least through the end of July, causing ERCOT officials to anticipate that the current usage record may yet again be broken—perhaps several times.

"If temperatures continue to run in the 100-degree range, it is quite possible that we will break several more records before the summer is over," said Sam Jones, Chief Operating Officer for ERCOT. "Even with continued sustained high temperatures, we're confident that we will have sufficient generation capacity and transmission to handle the electricity needs of Texas this summer, within the ERCOT service area."

One reason for the optimism despite the record-breaking temperatures is that more than 4,000 megawatts of new generation capacity will be available in Texas by the end of summer (one megawatt provides electricity for about 1,000 people). As a result, installed capacity in ERCOT should reach 63,071 megawatts by the end of July. Assuming normal temperatures, industry experts had originally forecast peak demand for the summer of 2000 to be 55,319 megawatts.

Since 1995, when construction was begun on 37 generation projects, 14 new power plants totaling 3,056 megawatts have become operational in Texas. By 2002, an additional 15 power plants totaling 9,105 megawatts are scheduled to be operational, while 33 other projects are already being planned. ERCOT also has six major transmission projects underway that will significantly relieve existing transmission constraints and will connect new power plants to the grid. The projects are slated to be completed between 2001 and 2005 and additional transmission projects are also being considered. Once they are on-line and operational, these new plants will enable Texas to reach a comfortable reserve margin over expected demands. "I think this speaks well for Texas," said Jones, referring to the current and planned generation and transmission projects. "We are one of the few regions in the nation that is building any significant projects, and this bodes well for the future should there be more summers like this one."

During times of severe strain on the supply, and/or during peak usage periods, ERCOT officials have protocols in place to help meet peak electric demand. Jones says that ERCOT has an Emergency Electric Curtailment Plan (EECP) that clearly identifies what procedures will take place in times of short supply in order to alleviate strain on the grid and reduce the possibility of outages (see ERCOT Operating Guide No. III, Emergency Operation in Reports and Presentations 2002). Typically in Texas, peak usage demand occurs at the start of the school year, but Jones says he does not expect there to be any blackouts in mid-August when school begins. "During peak usage periods, most customer outages occur because there has been a failure of local distribution equipment, not because of statewide bulk generation outages or transmission shortages. We're obviously prepared to act in case of an emergency, but we don't anticipate one. Right now, barring any unforeseen circumstances, we're in good shape."

ERCOT is one of ten regional reliability councils in North America and oversees the operation of some 60,000 megawatts of generation and 36,000 miles of transmission lines in the State of Texas. The primary regulatory authority for ERCOT is the Public Utility Commission of Texas. ERCOT's members include retail consumers, investor and municipally owned electric utilities, rural electric co-ops, river authorities, independent power producers, and power marketers.